RESEARCH-AND-DEVELOPMENT AND MARKETING MANAGERS IN HIGH-TECH COMPANIES - ARE THEY DIFFERENT

Although R&D marketing integration is essential for innovation success, their interactions are often difficult and conflict ridden. It has been suggested in the literature that sociocultural differences between them in terms of their orientation towards time, types of projects they prefer to work on, their tolerance for ambiguity, and their professional and bureaucratic orientations can significantly contribute to the quality of the vital interface. The findings of this study of R&D and marketing managers in high-tech compaines contradict the generally held beliefs that these managers are socioculturally different and that their orientations affect the integration process. In fact, more similarities than differences were found. It is therefore proposed that the R&D marketing integration problem may not be a simple 'people' problem. Its solution may depend as much on organization design variables.